Auckland landlord trespassed tenant and dumped belongings 11km away

PHOTO: The landlord dumped her tenant’s belongings 11 kilometres away after changing the lock on the premises and issuing a trespass notice. Photo credit: Getty Images

An Auckland landlord trespassed a tenant before dumping their belongings and changing the locks, the bitter battle ending up before the Tenancy Tribunal.

The feud between landlord Karen Bartlett and the tenant of her caravan, Natalie Heywood, had a “tortuous” background, tribunal adjudicator John Greene said in a recent ruling.

Heywood’s four-month tenancy of the caravan, located in the small, coastal town of Snells Beach, “did not go well”, Greene said in an order dated March 12. Heywood occupied the caravan from May 25, 2019 until she was trespassed from the premises in September that year.

Both women accused one another of a number of wrongdoings. Heywood detailed how Bartlett threatened to disconnect the power supply – which she did – and continually breached her privacy by unlawfully entering the caravan and interfering with her quiet enjoyment, amounting to harassment. Bartlett then trespassed Heywood from the premises, dumping her possessions 11 kilometres away in a public area.

Heywood also alleged Bartlett’s behaviour was “generally bullying and belittling”.

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